This is funny, I was thinking the exact same thing watching him play in garbage time in Game 3. I'd certainly be happier with him than Aaron Gray.

I don't know what to say either about the playing time. He's very undersized for the C position, but the Heat play really small. He could be extremely helpful down low.

it could be the knees. (pure speculation) his talent wasn't the reason he dropped in the draft it was the knees right? so maybe extended minutes exposes them more?

i wouldn't want to give blair a long deal. maybe a two or three year deal and i wouldn't want to pay him much more than gray is getting now. personally as a back up big i like the idea of the proposed, on this site, bargs for perkins trade better or the carl landry free agent signings better.

- He can't space the floor. He's made 15 shots longer than 15 feet his entire career.
- He's about average or below average at the rim, which is where he gets the vast majority of his shots.
- His single biggest skill is offensive rebounding, and SA doesn't go for offensive boards as a matter of basketball philosophy--they like to get back in transition instead.

On defense:
- He's short (6'7") and can't jump or move laterally very well (no ACLs)
- He has only two useful skills on D: he can push power low-post players off their spots when playing behind them, and he can rebound the ball very well.
- SA almost exclusively likes to front the post, which he's next-to-useless at, what with the (relative) shortness and the lack of jumping ability. That negates one of his two useful defensive skills.
- His strong defensive rebounding usually isn't needed. Timmy's still very solid on the defensive glass, Splitter's a good box-out guy even if he doesn't get gaudy rebound totals, Leonard is a better rebounder at the 3 spot than anybody not named LeBron James, and they have the luxury of sending 4 guys to the defensive glass and still almost always having a one-man fast break on the floor (Parker or Ginobili), so teams tend to not to crash the offensive glass too hard against them. (They were 3rd in the league this year in defensive rebounding%.)

He's definitely an elite NBA rebounder, and a solid finisher for his size. I wouldn't be sorry to see him in a Raptor uniform, and he's real easy to cheer for because he's always working his butt off. But he's definitely a very limited player.

Well, I'm not going to respond to that entire post but SA did of course play Blair. They've shied away from him in the playoffs but he played over 20 MPG his second and third years. His height will always be a concern but he's shown he can be effective against size. In the two playoff games he has actually played this year (3 and 4 against the Lakers - Gasol and Howard) he went 13 and 6 while averaging only ~16 minutes on the floor.

He is limited though and the concerns about his explosiveness (or lack thereof) are certainly real. I doubt he'd be effective in Toronto as he'd almost certainly be misused by the coaching staff here. But he will definitely contribute to a team somewhere next year.

- He can't space the floor. He's made 15 shots longer than 15 feet his entire career.
- He's about average or below average at the rim, which is where he gets the vast majority of his shots.
- His single biggest skill is offensive rebounding, and SA doesn't go for offensive boards as a matter of basketball philosophy--they like to get back in transition instead.

On defense:
- He's short (6'7") and can't jump or move laterally very well (no ACLs)
- He has only two useful skills on D: he can push power low-post players off their spots when playing behind them, and he can rebound the ball very well.
- SA almost exclusively likes to front the post, which he's next-to-useless at, what with the (relative) shortness and the lack of jumping ability. That negates one of his two useful defensive skills.
- His strong defensive rebounding usually isn't needed. Timmy's still very solid on the defensive glass, Splitter's a good box-out guy even if he doesn't get gaudy rebound totals, Leonard is a better rebounder at the 3 spot than anybody not named LeBron James, and they have the luxury of sending 4 guys to the defensive glass and still almost always having a one-man fast break on the floor (Parker or Ginobili), so teams tend to not to crash the offensive glass too hard against them. (They were 3rd in the league this year in defensive rebounding%.)

He's definitely an elite NBA rebounder, and a solid finisher for his size. I wouldn't be sorry to see him in a Raptor uniform, and he's real easy to cheer for because he's always working his butt off. But he's definitely a very limited player.

nice rundown, very interesting.

so i guess the point is he'd be a decent backup on a team with a different system?

I would prefer Jason Maxiell than Blair as Blair has limited mobility and very limited hops due to weak knees (no ACL's). This was displayed by his tear drops attempts in the paint in game 2. I like Blair's passion and flare, but it would be bad for his health if raps sign him where he plays a much bigger role. I think raps already have a blair/maxiell type of player in acy.

No to Perkins. He hasn't been the same since he left Boston. He's more useless than Aaron Gray. raps would have to overpay big time to get West, Millsap, Jefferson, or Hickson. Not sure about landry. How about Kenyon Martin? Would love his attitude and passion in the lockerroom. And he schooled Jonas and Amir at the ACC on both ends of the floor (I saw that live!).

Hawes is an acceptable fallback option...but he's pretty soft and pretty horrible defensively. His rebounding and block numbers are deceptive. He's slow footed and not very strong in the post.

If you read the stories about that breakfast thing with Casey, he really wants a "punch you in the mouth" type guy. THat is not Spencer Hawes.

Free agents that are vets and fit that bill is basically a list of one: Elton Brand. There are other options that might somewhat fit the character, but I think Brand's still pretty effective. Otherwise, I think they'll have to pull a trade, or settle for a lesser option (Pachulia, Mohammed, Turiaf) who will only be like having another Gray-like guy on the bench.

If we're going with a young (25-or-under) backup big, I'd rather get someone with upside. Blair really has failed to improve on his rookie year. Even account for reduced minutes and looking at per-36 stats, it's hard to find any evidence of growth. He's been relatively injury free thus far in his career, but he just doesn't look like someone who will have a long, healthy career. If his career upside is 10-7 in about 25 minutes a game, that doesn't suck, but there are higher-upside options out there.

Joey mentions Acy, and yeah, Acy might not be as savvy an NBA player yet, but he's got the same hustle, he's more athletic, he's got a better jump shot, and right now he's cheaper. His stats, minutes-adjusted, were on par with Blairs, and he's a couple years younger. Add to the fact that Blair hasn't been happy with his backup minutes in San Antonio, while Acy responded to a d-league assignment by busting his ass there, and I'd give Acy a nod on attitude as well.

It's worth noting that both Blair and Acy are sort of poor-man versions of Kenneth Faried, whom Ujiri drafted. And I think Acy is closer to Faried than Blair, based on his athleticism. While he's far from a part of the Raptors core at this point, I do think he fits the model of the sort of young, athletic depth player that Ujiri talks about stocking the end of the bench with.

Blair, how about Biedrins, for Bagnarni, straight up.

Simply this, defense, rebounding, experience, perfect to pair with Acy. This team needs a solid bigbackup. Acy impressed me last year. He needs somebody with experience/strength/size to partner with, and this way Bagnarni leaves town and we get depth going forward.
BIGGEST REASON! We need help at pg, this allows Massai to focus on getting Lowry a back up that pushes him.

QUOTE=TRex;212620]DeJuan Blair of the Spurs is a UFA after this season. Used to be a starter for SA Sbut doesn't play much because of the emergence of Splitter. Splitter is a UFA as well btw but he's not going anywhere.

Back to Blair. Great rebounder, tough, got a little bit of a mid range game, can play the 4 and the 5. Only 24 years old.[/QUOTE]